Motorola’s Moto G4 Plus offers large size and equally large value for its asking price.

In the Android smartphone world almost everyone has a play in the premium space, even though as a nation we tend to buy only Samsung or Apple smartphones if we’re after a premium device. Recently, Motorola’s pitch has been to leave the premium bloodbath alone and instead focus on mid-range and value segments. That’s solidly where the Motorola Moto G4 Plus sits, with either 16GB or 32GB versions available for $399 and $449 outright.

Design

Dual SIM support is nice

Slippery body can make it hard to hold at times

While the Motorola Moto G4 Plus is hardly the worst-looking phone we’ve seen, it's not exactly a stunning device either. Indeed, the most striking thing we can say about it is that it’s really rather plain: a slab of black glass and plastic with protruding camera bump on the back and ridged fingerprint sensor on the front. You won’t wow anyone with the Moto G4 Plus’s style, but you’re not likely to offend them either.

Larger phones are harder to hold in your hand purely due to their size. The Moto G4 Plus has a somewhat slippery back and curved sides, which accentuates this. As such, if you were keen we’d advise you to buy a case, because accidental drops feel more likely than not.

Fingerprint readers are becoming increasingly common among modern smartphones, so it's nice to see Motorola include one on the Moto G4 Plus. Its front-mounted fingerprint reader works quickly and well, and it’s a great inclusion on a phone at this price point if you hate having to input PINs, passwords or screen patterns all the time.

That said, the placement of the fingerprint sensor leaves a lot to be desired. The Moto G4 Plus uses an onscreen home button, but the fingerprint reader is right below it. On almost every other fingerprint-enabled phone, the reader in this position doubles as the home button because that’s where your fingers tend to automatically go. On many occasions we’d hit the fingerprint reader when we wanted the home screen because of this particular design quirk.

The Moto G4 Plus is dual-SIM capable with two slots plus microSD expansion. Many competing dual-SIM phones allow you to add two SIMs but no memory expansion, or are single SIM if you need microSD.

Camera

Has no trouble delivering quality photos superior to many phones at its price point

The Moto G4 Plus’s camera confirms what we’ve thought about mid-range cameras for some time now: they’re getting very good, which poses a challenge for the higher-priced premium smartphones. The G4 Plus has fast focus and a simple launching mechanism that involves a double flick of the wrist that never failed us during testing. You’re not likely to get truly exceptional shots with the G4 Plus, but it shoots above its price weighting for what it is.

Performance

Good mid-range performance that should handle most tasks without issue

Mid-range phones should deliver mid-range performance, and here the Motorola Moto G4 Plus performs quite well, challenging higher-priced mid-range options such as the Nexus 5X or Telstra Signature Premium at a lower price point. Here’s how it compares against a range of mid-range and budget handset options in Geekbench 3’s standard tests.

Handset

Geekbench 3 Single Core (higher is better)

Geekbench 3 Multi Core (higher is better)

Oppo R9

867

3303

Google Nexus 5X

1188

3198

Telstra Signature Premium

745

3116

Motorola Moto G4 Plus

715

3042

Oppo R7s

696

2980

LG Stylus DAB+

470

1418

Alcatel Go Play

453

1368

Samsung Galaxy J2

315

1044

Alcatel Pop 4

289

945

The same performance comes through in 3DMark’s Ice Storm Unlimited test, where the Moto 4G Plus acquits itself well:

Handset

3DMark Ice Storm Unlimited result

Oppo R9

11053

Motorola Moto G4 Plus

9757

Telstra Signature Premium

9559

Oppo R7s

8390

LG Stylus DAB+

4321

Alcatel Pop 4

3863

Samsung Galaxy J2

3469

Battery life

Should have no trouble getting most users through the day on a single charge

No removable battery, sadly

The Motorola Moto G4 Plus’s battery life is very good when you consider that it has to power a large screen for what is a mid-range phone. Using Geekbench’s battery test with screen dimming enabled, the Motorola Moto G4 Plus beat out a host of mid-range and budget contenders, bested only by a phone with a much smaller display.

Handset

Geekbench 3 battery test duration

Geekbench 3 battery score

Samsung Galaxy J2

10:05:20

2689

Motorola Moto 4G Plus

9:44:10

3977

Alcatel Pop 4

9:20:30

2490

LG Stylus DAB+

8:11:40

3278

Alcatel Go Play

7:21:10

2941

Google Nexus 5X

7:14:20

4062

Oppo R7s

7:00:00

2800

Oppo R9

6:41:50

4018

Telstra Signature Premium

5:48:50

3260

Alcatel OneTouch Idol 3

5:42:00

2276

Huawei P8 Lite

4:39:40

2768

Unfortunately, while you can remove the rear cover of the Moto G4 Plus to access the SIM card and microSD card slots, you can't swap the battery out. That means no carrying around spares for emergencies, sadly.

Verdict

A good choice for budget-conscious buyers wanting a large handset

The Motorola Moto G4 Plus competes in the mid-range space where a lot of outright purchase buyers are flocking. It competes really well, and is recommended if you want a larger handset at an affordable price.

You do have a lot of other choices if, for example, the Moto G4 Plus’s rather plain style doesn’t appeal. Consider Telstra’s Signature Premium phone if you’re happy on Telstra’s network, or Oppo’s R7s perhaps. If you want a large phone in the mid-range space, you could also consider LG’s Stylus DAB+ phone.

Pricing and availability

Motorola Moto G4 Plus

More than meets the eye

The Motorola Moto G4 Plus might look like a simple smartphone, but it packs plenty of features to help it stand out from the pack.

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